In this short clip, Eon does something every kid eventually wants to master on their own: buttoning up a shirt. And instead of keeping the trick to himself, he turns to the camera to teach other kids how to do it too.

"Find a hole and push it through"

Eon keeps it wonderfully simple. In his own words:

"I will show you how to button up — to push through. You need to find a hole, and you need to push it through."

That's really the whole secret, and it's worth slowing down on. A button is the little round disc on one side of the shirt. The buttonhole is the small slit on the other side. To fasten the shirt, the button has to travel through that slit. So the two steps are:

  1. Line up the button with its matching hole.
  2. Push the button through the hole until it pops out the other side.

When it pops through and stays, that side of the shirt is held closed. Do that for each button down the front, and your shirt is buttoned.

Why it can be tricky at first

Buttons are small, and so are the holes — so this is a job for your fingers and your eyes working together. That teamwork has a name: fine motor skills, the careful little movements your hands make for things like buttoning, zipping, or tying shoes. They get easier with practice, which is exactly why Eon makes it look so calm: he's done it enough times that find the hole, push it through is now automatic.

One handy tip that isn't in the clip but helps a lot: start from the bottom button. That way it's easier to keep each button lined up with the right hole, so you don't end up with one side longer than the other.

Try it

Grab a shirt, sweater, or jacket that has buttons. Pick the bottom button and find its matching hole. Now do exactly what Eon says: line them up, then push it through until the button pops out and holds. Move up one button at a time. If your fingers feel clumsy at first, that's normal — that's your fine motor skills getting stronger. Try it again tomorrow morning when you get dressed, and see how much faster you are by the end of the week. Soon you'll be buttoning up all by yourself, just like Eon.